~ Hockey for Fans and Players of Color

On #OscarsSoWhite night, a movie highlights hockey’s diversity

On an evening when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will struggle with the lack of diversity among its Oscars nominees, the NHL Network will highlight hockey’s gradually growing diversity with an encore presentation of “Soul on Ice: Past, Present & Future.”

Damon Kwame Mason (right)interviewed hockey great Herb Carnegie before he passed away in March 2012.

The network broadcast the film Wednesday night and NHLers from players such as Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Trevor Daley to Commissioner Gary Bettman and Washington Capitals Owner Ted Leonsis have taken to the airwaves to promote the film.

“It’s a special thing for someone for someone to put a film out like this,” Daley told “NHL Live Powered by Constellation.”

Bryce Salvador – a retired defenseman who played for the St. Louis Blues, New Jersey Devils – called the movie “so important.”

“When I was 7-8 years old, just seeing Grant Fuhr play during the heydays of the Oilers really opened my mind to what was possible for someone of color,” Salvador said. “When you see diversity, how it’s growing, ‘Hockey is for Everyone,’ and where it’s going, it’s phenomenal.”